Cleary will say he was aiming for Hannan’s shoulder. At the very least, it was a reckless play. But Babcock will probably praise Cleary for his “toughness” and Holland will use that as an excuse to sign him to a 3 year, $9M contract.

Cleary is on pace for a 6 goal, 8 assist and -13 season. And for that, he’s getting $1.75M a year. He’s a total waste of cap and roster space, and Holland and babcock should be embarrassed that he ever brought him back.

This is the perfect example of why there shouldn’t be an instigator penalty.

Absolutely. What a joke.

How in the *#$%@& can you give an instigator on a play like that? Cleary instigated the fight by elbowing Hannan. Whether it was Hannan or a teammate taking issue with Cleary’s bullshit there is no way that anyone on the Sharks should get an instigator there.

Also, what’s with the bullshit of Cleary getting a roughing penalty rather than an elbowing penalty an the further bullshit of Hannan getting a misconduct? Is that automatic because of the instigator that he shouldn’t have gotten?

Complete chicken shit. That play is totally indefensible. Just another guy who can’t play trying to have an impact on a game. When will the GM’s and coaches around the league stop employing these jackasses?

It seens like he only understood the shit he did after a few seconds, and regreted instantly, but that’s no excuse, should be suspended a couple games

And your evidence for his regret is based on…. what exactly? The fact that he plays for the Wings who, as we all know, are the cleanest organization in the history of professional sports? Come on.

I think the fact that he didn’t immediately sucker-punch Hannan as the guy skated 15 feet to get to him without wearing any gloves is a pretty good indication that Cleary realized what he had done.

Being cognizant of what you did isn’t the same as regretting it.

And maybe he didn’t immediately sucker punch Hannan because he knew that sucker punching a guy after you’ve driven an elbow into his temple is a surefire way to get suspended, rather than simply being subjected to the randow wheel of justice.

Since everyone here is making sense, I feel compelled to post a complete homer comment… That was an accidental hit to the head. It’s Hannan’s fault for being there. It’s only the leagues hatred of the DRW that this is even an issue. Shew… I feel better now!

I can take losing. I can even take getting embarrased on occasion. I won’t like it, but I can take it. But no matter how bad they have lost in the past, you could always say “well at least they didnt goon it up like most other teams in the league would.”

Babs and Holland need to stamp this out immmediately. That is not how you send a message. Scoring goals and winning games is how you send a message. If you didnt like being embarrassed, play better and take it out on the next team by burrying them in goals.

Posted by
Hootinani
from the parade following Babs out of town on 01/10/14 at 02:19 PM ET

Babs and Holland need to stamp this out immmediately. That is not how you send a message. Scoring goals and winning games is how you send a message. If you didnt like being embarrassed, play better and take it out on the next team by burrying them in goals.

Posted by Hootinani on 01/10/14 at 02:19 PM ET

This isn’t their usual play though - not by any means. I don’t know that it’s a good idea for the coach to tell the team to settle down when the team hasn’t had any grit or determination 85% of the season.

I never said he’s a goon, but he’s still in that same category as guys like John Scott because both of them aren’t actually good at hockey and look for ways to impact a game with “physical” play. If you can’t play you shouldn’t be on the team, let alone on the ice, and it’s pretty clear Cleary can’t play.

Circumstantial evidence is still evidence.

So is the fact that I didn’t sucker punch you evidence that I retract my comments and actually agree with you?

What a brutally misguided comparison. Dan Cleary has more goals, assists, and points THIS SEASON than John Scott has in his entire 205-game career.

Cleary USED to be a good player but is no longer. Look at his stats this year: how does he help his team and impact the game in a positive way? You’re missing my point because you think I’m under the impression that Cleary is some knuckle dragger like Scott. He’s not now nor has he ever been that type of guy. What he has in common with John Scott, at this point in his career, is a complete inability to contribute to a winning hockey team at the highest level of the sport.